8 family members killed in Nyeri-Nyahururu road accident

Eight people died on Tuesday evening in a road accident at Kianugu area along the Nyeri-Nyahururu road.

The victims, who are said to be from the same family, were travelling from a funeral ceremony in Nyeri when the driver of the 14-seater matatu they were travelling in lost control of the vehicle causing it to veer off the road and roll several times.

Five of the victims, among them the driver and a child died on the spot while three others succumbed to their injuries while undergoing treatment at the Nyahururu County and Referral Hospital.

Several other victims are recuperating at the same hospital with serious injuries they sustained from the 7.30pm accident that occurred near Ndaragwa trading centre.

Ndaragwa Member of Parliament Jeremiah Kioni and several local leaders who visited the scene and the victims at the Nyahururu condoled with the family, and called on drivers to observe caution to avert such fatal accidents.

Kioni lamented that over the holidays no such incidents were reported in the area and regretted how it occurred at the beginning of the year.

The leaders urged the government to move with speed and crack the whip on reckless drivers.

The accident came on a day when President Uhuru Kenyatta ordered the National Transport and Safety Authority (NTSA) off the roads following public outcry over the rampant loss of lives to road accidents.

Over 350 people perished in road accidents in the month of December 2017 alone, with the number now close to 400.